MPs debated mental health and wellbeing of Londoners
12 February 2015
On Thursday 12 February, MPs took part in a general debate on mental health and wellbeing of Londoners. This debate was scheduled by the Backbench Business Committee following a bid from Diane Abbott, Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington.
The debate was opened by Diane Abbott. Shadow Public Health Minister, Luciana Berger, responded to the debate for the Opposition. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health, Jane Ellison, replied for the Government.
Watch the debate and read the transcript
- Watch Parliament TV: MPs debate mental health and wellbeing of Londoners, 12 February
- Read Commons Hansard: MPs debate mental health and wellbeing of Londoners, 12 February
Backbench Business Committee
The Backbench Business Committee meets weekly on Tuesdays at 1pm to consider requests for debates from any backbench Members of Parliament on any subject, including those raised in e-petitions or national campaigns.
An MP must make a representation before the Committee for an e-petition or petition to be debated; e-petitions exceeding the Government's 100,000 signature threshold are not automatically allocated backbench time.
The Committee then has to decide how to allocate the limited Parliamentary time it has at its disposal. The Committee's meetings are always conducted in public and can be watched on Parliament TV.